AMAZING

At work today I truely had a remarkable experience. I work at the Maverik in Springville next to the freeway. This man came into the store who I have helped and spoke to many times in the last 2 1/2 years I have worked there, although today was different. I started to talking to him about what he had done over the weekend and he told me got to go and speak to youth about addiction. Now I was not suprised because I have heard him recall how he was a recovering addict. I started asking him more about his road to recovery and it is truely inspiring to me.

The man said he had a full ride scholorship to the University of Utah. He was going into pre-med. He had been at the U of U for nearly two years before his story began. He started using ridaline to be more alter during his classes and while he was taking his tests. One day while getting a few more ridaline pills for his upcoming test the man he bought drugs from said you should try this stuff. This stuff is way cheeper than ridaline and will help you stay up all night to get ready for your test the next day. So the man took it and that is where he recalled to me how his addiction had started.

The drug the man gave him was Meth. He said from the first moment he tried it he was addicted. He said within two months of first using meth had dropped out of school and was living on the streets of Salt Lake. He said he did everything and anything he could to get Meth. He said he was arrested over fifty times, served time at the state penetentary, and overdosed numerouse times. He said his addiction was ongoing for nearly 13 years before he finally tried to end his life through a lethal dose of meth. He said he just wanted it to be all over with. He recalled taking the Meth and feeling it kick in and he knew he was going to die.

The man woke up to the sight of his parol officer while he was on his way to the hospital via ambulence. He said it was definately a higher power that saved him, because he knew he had taken enough to kill him and nobody was expected to come to his home that day. He started his recovery due to the fact the state of Utah finally made it manditory for him to attend drug court. He said that decesion the judge made for him saved his life. He has been sober for nearly 3 years now. He talks to youth groups and troubled teens every chance he can about the dangers of drugs. He said he has an obligation to help everyone and anyone he can from hearing his story, because of all the pain he had inflicted on families, kids, and people during his addiction to meth.

I just thought what an amazing story he had and I felt I should share it with others as well. It is truely inspiring to me someone has the willpower and determination to kick such a horrific addiction.